Interviews

Street Fighter IV Interview with Yoshinori Ono

A conversation with Capcom's Yoshinori Ono and a behind-the-scenes discussion of Street Fighter IV.

It's rare to meet someone like Capcom's Yoshinori Ono. Even when speaking through a translator, his raw enthusiasm manages to transcend all language barriers. In this interview, we speak to a man with great love in his heart for the Street Fighter franchise, and for his latest game in particular, Street Fighter IV. Read on to learn about the rationale behind the designs of the game's new characters, the gameplay mechanics behind the new fighting system, and how Street Fighter IV is being made to bring fans of Street Fighter II back to the fighting game series that set arcades on fire so many years ago.

This One's for the Fans

GameSpy: I just came back from your Making of Street Fighter IV panel, where you had a great reaction from the assembled fans. How important is it for you to make a good impression on the Comic-Con attendees?

Yoshinori Ono, Lead Producer: So basically, to rewind a little bit, the whole reason that Street Fighter IV even exists as a project is because the fans demanded it. It's something that the media always told me, what the fans always told me, and what our U.S. branch constantly told me. They want it, they want it, they want it! Since we live and work in Japan, up in our ivory towers so to speak, we don't get the chance to mingle with the hardcore fans, and really see the look on their faces and how excited they are.

So it's really important that we come to Comic-Con and understand that the fans really do want it and that they are interested, and it's also important for us to give back, and to show the fans that we're thinking of them. We showed them the latest trailers and things like that. So it's important to me that because the game started as a project for the fans, to come back full circle, back to the fans, and to interact with them on a personal level. It's terribly important to us personally and for the project.

GameSpy: Here's a personal anecdote I'm not too ashamed to share here. Street Fighter II was my game as a teenager growing up, and I would spend countless hours at home practicing on the SNES version. I would even play against my friends using my feet, tossing sonic booms and fireballs with my toes.

Yoshinori Ono: (laughs) Wow! Seth can do that too, our community guy. He can play with one hand, behind his back, things like that.